The Radiant Gardens Mental Institute
by J T Elroy
Summary: Sora, a schizophrenic, is plagued with visions of a boy named Roxas, who tells him he is going to save the world. When admitted to the Radiant Gardens Mental Insitute, Riku, a psychiatrist, attempts to help him.


I'm back!!

Disclaimer: The names, locales, and plot references from the Kingdom Hearts series are not owned by me, but by Square Enix. Only the text is mine. Also, Wen Shing-Tseng and Clozapine are, respectively, a real schizophrenia expert and a real drug. The "treatment" for schizophrenia attributed to Shing-Tseng is fictional and of my own invention. It has nothing to do with Shing-Tseng. Also, Clozapine is actually a drug perscribed to patients who are not responsive to other drugs.

Word Count: 11,374 (HOLY SHIT!!)

Rating: M for copious language, violence, and brief sexual content.

Beta: **Sulky Seraph **(thanks for beta'ing this colossus...)

Okay! Some notes: As I said above, I researched and added in real names of drugs and psychiatrists into my fic, because I am just that dedicated. Also, I realize calling Riku Dr. Riku would make Riku his last name, but in all reality no Kingdom Hearts characters have any name other than their first, and I suck at coming up with names. If it bothers you that much, maybe you could pretend that Riku is his first name AND last name...

Oh, and I know my beta is going to post a story with some similarities to mine soon. I'd like to point out here and now that the similarities between our fics is entirely coincidental. I attribute it to the "great minds think alike" saying.

**NEW:** She put up her fic, although she decided to make hers into two-shot. If you liked this fic, you'll probably like hers too: .net/s/5039391/1/

(I apologize for that epic fail posting that link. Anyway it should work now...)

Oh, and as a side note, I think that perscription drugs can do a lot of good for people with mental disorders. Even if they are portrayed in a negative light in this fic, I do think perscription drugs can be a big help.

And that is all I have to say... I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!

* * *

_Case #000657_

_Institution: Radiant Gardens Mental Institute_

_Patient: Sora _

_Diagnosis: Schizophrenia_

_Symptoms: Patient reports sightings of a figure similar to himself, which he calls "Roxas." Patient regularly converses with this person, often when he is alone in a room._

_Action: Patient has been admitted to the institution, and is being placed under the care of Dr. Riku._

Sora was kind of uncomfortable with this whole "loony bin" deal. He realized he was pretty crazy, but he found it to be a bit excessive, being institutionalized among people who had probably killed their parents. All Sora had done was talk to someone who wasn't really there.

This was what he thought as he woke up in his small little room. He had fallen asleep a few hours ago because he was bored, and figured that maybe getting some rest would past the time, since nothing else would.

There was a buzzing noise: a signal that someone was entering his room. He looked up to see an older male, about a foot taller than him. He had hair down to his shoulders, which was so blonde that it was nearly white.

"I'm Riku, your psychiatrist." He said in a casual tone.

"Ah." Sora mumbled, "So you're the one who's going to be giving me drugs that make Roxas go away?"

"More or less."

"Good. He's getting annoying"

"Annoying?"

"He talks a lot at night. And the stuff he says is kinda crazy."

"What does he say that's… crazy?" Sora realized the irony of his earlier statement but figured it was too late to correct and decided to simply answer Riku's question.

"That he was created when I lost my heart or something. He also tells these weird stories that barely make any sense."

"Could you tell me any of them?"

"No… I can't remember any of them." Riku finished the notes he had been taking on Sora's condition.

"Thanks." Riku said. "I'm going to bring these notes home, and I'll have a prescription by tomorrow."

He stood up and began to walk towards the door, as he reached for the doorknob, he remembered he had forgotten to tell Sora about his room.

"By the by, this room is only temporary, in about an hour we're going to move you to a permanent room."

"Why did you even put me in here in the first place?"

"I had to make sure you were stable first."

With that, he turned around and left the room.

* * *

When Riku got home, it had begun to rain slightly. He reflected on the relaxing sound the drops made as he unlocked the door and went in.

His house was large, for a suburban house. Riku liked the extra space though; he felt claustrophobic in smaller homes, but in this house, he felt at home.

"Welcome home!" Kairi yelled as she came down the stairs. "How was work today?" she asked with a smile so cheerful it was almost inappropriate.

"It probably wasn't all that much different from yours." Riku answered, with a sharp, comical tone buried within his voice. "Considering we work in the same place."

"Yes, but your job is so much more interesting! I'm just a nurse…"

"And I'm just a psychiatrist. Hey, we're a perfect match!"

"Wasn't that decided when we got engaged?"

"Debatably, yes."

Then she kissed him, a light "honey, you're home!" kiss.

Kairi, whose shift got off earlier than Riku's, had dinner ready as soon as he got home. She'd made chicken, with some form of Mexican spice that Riku was unfamiliar with.

"So how was work today?" she asked. "Any new patients?"

"One."

"What are they like?"

"I can't tell you."

"Oh right." She smiled "All that 'patient confidentiality' bullshit." Riku shot her a mean glance. "What? I was kidding!" Riku paused, then laughed lightly.

"Sure you were."

The rest of the night was without incident. The two finished their dinner, cleaned up, watched some TV shows, went to bed, and uneventfully fell asleep.

* * *

Sora woke up in the room he had been moved to last night. He was happy to find that he was the only one in the room. Well, the only real person in the room, but Roxas hadn't been there the past night, so Sora considered himself alone.

The bed was mildly uncomfortable, but not enough to warrant any major complaints. The room also had small toilet, sink, and mirror in it, in case he had some business to take care of.

As Sora lay on his bed, facing the ceiling, he realized that the one thing he wanted in that moment was something to draw with. The walls were awfully boring in their current bare state. Sora wanted to add some art to the walls, spruce things up a bit.

The door opened up, and the man Riku from the day before walked in. He had the same notepad as he did yesterday, but now he also had a plastic cup with two small yellow pills in it.

"Is that my medication?"

"Yes it is! Here you are." Riku handed the plastic cup to Sora, who stared at it for a few seconds.

"Do you have any water?"

"Well, what about your sink?" Riku pointed at the aforementioned plumbing appliance, which Sora then turned his head to look at. He turned back to Riku, and pointed a thumb back at it.

"I hate the water in that thing. Tastes like poison."

"You know, paranoia is a common symptom of schizophrenia."

"I didn't say I thought you guys were trying to poison me, I said it tastes like poison. As in, it tastes very, very bad. Like vomit-inducingly bad."

"That bad, huh?"

"Yes. I outright refuse to drink it. Unless I'm dying of thirst. Which, thankfully, I currently am not."

"Ok. I'll call in for some bottled water." Riku immediately buzzed a nurse in. The nurse that came in had shoulder length red-hair, and a nice figure. Riku seemed to recognize her. She handed Sora the bottle of water with a kind grin. As she turned to exit his room, Sora noticed her wink at Riku.

Sora took his medication, and was relieved by the crisp taste of the bottled water.

"So do you know her?" Sora asked.

"Yes, I do."

"How?"

"She's my girlfriend. Actually, she's my fiancée."

"Hm. Lucky catch, she's cute." Riku wasn't quite sure how to react to that statement, so he simply decided not to.

"The medication should decrease your symptoms. If it doesn't, we can increase the dosage, or move you to an entirely different medication."

"Ah."

"Okay Sora, I have to go check in with some of my other patients. You have a nice day, alright?"

"Alright."

* * *

It was lunchtime. Sora didn't know anyone else there, so he sat at a random table. There was only one other person sitting at the table. He was a tall, pale man with long red hair. Sora simply plopped his lunch tray down on the table and began to eat. The man examined him slightly before speaking,

"My names Axel."

"Really? That's not a normal name."

"No, it's not. I changed it." Sora looked at him. This guy was just weird enough to be interesting.

"Why?"

"Because my heart changed, so I changed me name to go with it." Sora debated whether or not he should question what he meant by saying his "heart changed" when Axel continued to speak.

"Do you see those 12 people at that table over there?"

"Yeah."

"We're part of a gang. We call ourselves Organization XIII"

"That's not very creative of you."

"Maybe not, but we're cool enough not to have a creative name." Sora looked up from the food he had been idly poking with his fork.

"Cool huh? How's that? What does your gang do that's cool?"

"We steal people's hearts to try and make up for the way ours have changed."

"Ah…ha" Sora began to realize that this man's insanity was less entertaining and more creepy. "Do you actually, you know, remove people's hearts?"

"Oh, no, that would be weird!" Axel laughed. Sora forced a laugh too, if only for appearances. "We just keep looking for the things called Kingdom Hearts, which are like these giant grab bags filled with the energies of discarded hearts. Whenever we find one, we use the energy to repair our own hearts!"

"Sounds like you're just a bunch of nobodies with some kooky dreams."

* * *

"Sora!"

"Oh fuck." Sora looked at the oddly dressed blonde standing in front of him, who wasn't really standing in front of him. "The doctors tell me you're not real."

"Bullshit." Roxas smiled deviously. "Do I look not real to you?"

"Well, the fact that nobody else can see or hear you does put a bit of a damper on your whole 'reality' argument."

"Sora, look at me." Against his better judgment, Sora looked at him. "You've got to get out of here Sora. They're lying to you."

"Who is? Riku?"

"Him, and everyone else. All they want is your keyblade, they don't want to help you."

"Right." Sora sighed. "Now please go away."

"Sora, this is serious. The Heartless are coming, and everyone here is working for them. They want to take your keyblade and destroy it so that no-one can fight the heartless."

"And who are the heartless?"

"Any being who has lost his or her heart to their own darkness."

"I'm assuming that's a metaphorical darkness."

"Yes."

"I'd be much happier if you just went away."

"Fine, but I'm leaving you with this. This place is only here to keep you from saving the world."

Riku entered the room at that point, and Roxas just sort of disappeared.

"Was that Roxas you were just talking to?"

"Yes, unfortunately."

"What did he tell you."

"That you and this whole facility was here to… stop me from saving the world."

"How are you going to save the world?"

"Apparently Roxas thinks I have some weird weapon called a Keyblade which is the only thing that can beat this weird group of things called the Heartless."

"Do you believe Roxas?"

"No, he's a kook." Sora took a deep breath. "I have never believed anything he's said, but he keeps saying it anyway. I want him to go away."

"Well, that's what were trying to do. " Riku looked at his notes "well, this indicates your old medication was ineffective, completely. We're moving you up to a stronger medication."

"Mm."

* * *

Riku arrived home again. This time, he and Kairi were driving home together. Their shifts at the institute happened to fall at the same time, making carpooling the obvious option.

They walked in together, talking about generally meaningless subjects and laughing happily. As they crossed the threshold of the door, Kairi made a beeline for the kitchen to being preparing dinner. Riku, meanwhile, walked upstairs to his study.

He sat at his desk. The desk held many dark secrets for Riku, but he tried not to think about them. He tried not to think about the times when he felt completely dissatisfied with himself. As Riku reflected on those times, he absent-mindedly rolled up his sleeve and felt the scars on his wrist. Cold shivers ran down his spine as his finger passed over the scars. He shivered even more in response to the terrible memories those scars summoned. The feelings of overwhelming sadness, emptiness.

Riku rolled his sleeve back down and pushed those thoughts deep into the back of his mind, as he always did. He needed to be happy, to be normal. There was no time to wallow in self-pity when so many people needed help.

With that, Riku opened his filing cabinet and brought out Sora's file. HE began to make notes:

_Additional Notes: Symptoms non-responsive to Antipsychotics. Changing prescription to Clozapine, as it is intended for those who are non-responsive to other drugs._

_Note appearance of paranoia symptom- delusions are attempting to convince subject of the infidelity of the Radiant Gardens Mental Institute._

Riku's cell-phone rang. The institute was calling.

* * *

Kairi heard Riku come down the stairs, faster than usual.

"I've got to go back to the institute." He called as he left. "Sora is having some serious problems."

"Okay!" Kairi called sweetly. "Dinner should be ready by the time you get back!"

The door shut. Kairi busied herself making dinner.

It didn't take long for her to realize the girl was watching her."

"You're here…again." Kairi said cautiously. "Namine."

"Yes. You didn't listen to what I told you."

"That's because it was insane."

"It's not insane! You have the power to unlock Kingdom Hearts!"

"And you have the power to re-write memories, we've been over this."

"You can't just sit around, you have to go find the other Princesses of Heart, and get to Kingdom Hearts." Kairi began to get frustrated.

"I don't want to talk with you anymore."

"I can't leave until you promise you start fulfilling your destiny."

"I'm calling the police."

* * *

Riku burst into Sora's room. Sora was screaming, acting as if he was being attacked.

"Sora, whatever you see, its not real!"

"They're everywhere! Get them off!"

"What are here Sora?"

"These little black things! They're crawling all over me, I can't get them off!" Riku grabbed Sora, and began dragging him out of his room.

"Those black things aren't real! They're in your head, and that's all! Hallucinations!" Sora continued to fight harder. "Can someone sedate him please?!" At that moment, one of the nurses who had been observing the scene produced a syringe filled with a powerful sedative. She promptly injected the serum into Sora's arm. The effect was immediate, and only a few minutes later Sora lay asleep on the floor of his room.

"Bring him to one of the protected rooms. Start him on Clozapine." Riku panted. As the nurses transported the unconscious Sora to a padded room similar to the one he had been in at the beginning, Riku slogged himself up to his on-site office.

He sat in the chair before his desk, taking a few deep breaths. He put his hands on his face, then leaned back and ran them through his hair. Then his desk phone rang

"Yes?"

"_Is this the office of one Dr. Riku?"_

"Yes it is."

"_Sir, your wife called this police department about 20 minutes ago reporting that there was a woman in your house. Our men arrived on the scene and found her to be alone, but she appeared to be talking to someone who wasn't there. "_

"Where is she now?"

"_She was taken down to the station, and she's here now."_

"Thank you. I'll be over immediately."

* * *

_Case# 000655_

_Patient: Kairi_

_Insitution: Radiant Gardens Mental Institute (temporary)_

_Diagnosis: Schizophrenia_

_Symptoms: Hallucinations of a girl called Namine. Patient does not talk to Namine with regularity, and usually only converses actively when alone._

_Action: Kairi is being allowed to live at home with Riku. However, her car has been impounded to prevent her from causing harm during a remission._

* * *

Riku stood before the director of the Radiant Gardens Mental Hospital. He was named Ansem. He was an older man, with short blonde hair, and a goatee. His appearance so perfectly matched the stereotypical hermit that a vast amount of the staff had jokingly taken to calling him Ansem the Wise. Ansem found this nickname rather comical, and actually encouraged them to call him it.

In all honesty, Riku disliked Ansem. Riku perceived him to be somewhat of a control freak. Ansem often used that control in ways which, intentionally or not, made it very difficult for Riku to work effectively.

"So, what exactly are you suggesting, Riku?" Ansem asked.

"Well, the schizophrenia expert Wen Shing-Tseng said that having two victims of schizophrenia live closely together may be highly beneficial."

"Ah yes, that doctor working out of the University of Hawaii. But you haven't told me what you are suggesting."

"Well as you know, my fiancée was recently diagnosed with schizophrenia, and my patient Sora also had a pretty extreme case of it…"

"You want my permission to allow Sora to live in your house with you to try Shing-Tseng's radical new treatment, yes?"

"Yes."

"Riku, you realize that this goes against standard regulations, right?"

"Yes, but I have a right to break regulations if, in my professional opinion, I find it necessary to do so in order to cure my patient."

"And your professional opinion is that this is necessary?"

"It is."

"Then you have my permission. I'll arrange for Sora's transportation immediately."

"Thank you."

* * *

Sora pivoted his head around to get a good look around Riku's house. It was much bigger than the house he remembered living in. Riku stepped through the door behind Sora and put his hand on Sora's shoulder.

"So, Sora, do you like this place?"

"Yeah. It's a lot nicer than I'm used to." He looked at Riku. "So where will I be sleeping?" Riku smiled.

"Follow me."

Riku showed Sora to their guest room, which had a queen-sized bed in it, a few pillows, a dresser, a window, and a mirror.

"I'm staying _here_? Isn't this a bit fancy?"

"Oh, of course not." Riku proceeded to show Sora other important amenities scattered throughout his house.

_Bathroom…_

_Kitchen (fridge)…_

_Study…_

_Master Bedroom…_

_Living Room (games)…_

Sora tried to make a mental note for all the locations that Riku was showing him, and he did a relatively good job, even if some of the locations did fall out of his memory.

"Alright Sora, make yourself at home. I need to go pick up my wife from her psychiatrist's appointment."

"Psychiatrist's appointment?"

"I'll explain when I get back. Have fun!"

Once Riku was gone, Sora ran through the list of places he had been shown, memorizing their locations. After that was done, he decided to see if there was anything interesting among the games Riku had shown him in the living room.

None of them particularly interested him, so Sora decided to rest in a chair.

"Sora."

"Oh fuck, not you again."

"You're in danger."

"I am so fucking NOT in danger. I'm in the house of a person who wants to help me."

"Sora, he just wants to…"

"ENOUGH ABOUT THE FUCKING KEYBLADE!!" An awkward silence settled over the room.

"Sora, do you know the medicine they've put you on?"

"Yeah, its Clozapine. It's supposed to work for people who aren't responsive to other medications."

"Have you started on it yet?"

"No."

"Good! Then it's not too late!"

"Oh god, Roxas, not another one of your conspiracy theories."

"Sora, that medicine will destroy your ability to wield the key—"

"Didn't I just say that I didn't care about that damn keyblade?"

"Your power if already failing, it's why those heartless were able to attack you." Some sweat began popping up on Sora's brow.

"W-what?"

"You remember those black creatures that swarmed you, that no-one else could see? Those were heartless."

"They were a hallucination."

"You can keep telling yourself that. We'll see how long it takes you to realize I'm right." Then Roxas disappeared.

* * *

Riku and Kairi were in their car together as they drove home. Riku was explaining his plan to her.

"Wait," she said. "So you're bringing Sora to _our_ house?"

"Yes."

"Because some expert in Hawaii believes recovery is assisted by connections between schizophrenics."

"And you're also a schizophrenic."

"Yeah, but mine's not as bad as his right?"

"At this point, right."

"What do you mean 'at this point?' "

"I mean your case could worsen, or his could improve. But judging only by where everyone is right now, you are the better one."

* * *

Riku walked through the door of his own home to find Sora sitting in the living room staring blankly. As Riku approached him, Sora turned his head to look at Riku.

"What does Clozapine do?" Sora asked.

"It lowers the levels of certain chemicals in your brain that are usually found to be elevated in Schizophrenics."

"Chemicals like what?"

"Erm… dopamine, serotonin, I can't think of any others. Off the top of my head. Why?"

"So taking it would stop serious episodes like I had earlier, not encourage them." Riku sat down next to Sora.

"Sora, why would I ever prescribe medication designed to induce schizophrenic episodes."

"It's just… when you left Roxas showed up again. He told me that Clozapine would make me weaker and then those things would attack me again."

"Sora." Riku looked at him seriously. "I promise you that everything I do for you is intended to help you, not harm you." He the smiled a little bit. "Plus, you should know that this is a fairly common occurrence among schizophrenics. Their delusions often make them paranoid."

"So its normal for Roxas to be telling me these things."

"Well it's a normal abnormality" Riku said with bothering to consider the oxymoronic nature of that statement. Despite this lack of consideration, Sora was satisfied with the answer.

Riku then gave Sora his first dose of Clozapine, and he gave Kairi a milder antipsychotic. They appeared to have good results.

* * *

It was a few days since Sora and Kairi had begun their medications. Riku decided it was time to begin the treatment. The strategy called for unsupervised group therapy among the schizophrenics.

Sora and Kairi had taken to calling their delusions their Nobodies and had decided it would be best to review the stories their Nobodies were telling them,

Sora said that, according to Roxas, he was the sole wielder of a weapon called the keyblade, which was the only weapon that could defeat the heartless. He then added the Roxas was trying to convince him that the efforts of Riku were attempts to keep him from wielding the keyblade.

Kairi said that Namine had told her that she was one of seven Princesses of Heart: a princess who's heart, when united with the other princesses', had the ability to open Kingdom Hearts.

"Kingdom Hearts… where have I heard that before?" Sora wondered absently.

_We just keep looking for the things called Kingdom Hearts, which are like these giant grab bags filled with the energies of discarded hearts. Whenever we find one, we use the energy to repair our own hearts_!

"There was this weird guy I talked to one day during lunch," Sora began. "He talked about Kingdom Hearts, called them bags made of the energy of discarded. I think he said his gang all had broken hearts and only that energy could fix them." Kairi got a perplexed look on her face.

"So, Kingdom Hearts has the power to restore broken hearts?"

"According to the crazy people, yeah." They laughed at this.

"That's not all Sora." It was Roxas.

"Roxas is here." Sora immediately said.

"Namine is here too." Kairi returned.

"Sora, Kingdom Hearts gets it energy from the heartless you kill with your keyblade."

"Kairi, Roxas says that when I kill these creatures called Heartless with a weapon called the Keyblade, it fills up Kingdom Hearts."

Although Sora couldn't see her, Namine was kneeling next to Kairi, and at this point, she spoke up.

"That's right!" She said. "And Kairi, you have to open up Kingdom Hearts before Organization XIII gets to it!"

"What's Organization XIII?"

Sora and Namine attempted to answer this at the same time:

"Organization XIII isare anobdiesbunch ofwho crazywant peopleto get their hearts back."

"WAIT!" Kairi yelled! Don't talk at the same time!" Sora realized that he had been talking over Namine, which was difficult to avoid since he couldn't see or hear her. "Sora, who is Organization XIII?"

"That gang of people I told you about who wanted Kingdom Hearts."

"Oh." Kairi said, feeling kind of stupid for not having worked that out on her own. "Now Namine, why should I get to Kingdom Hearts before the Organization does?"

"Because the reason that the Organization members are Nobodies is because they gave into their own darkness, and restoring their hearts will make these evil people even more powerful."

"Sora, Namine says that the Organization is evil, and that if they get to Kingdom Hearts first they will become even more powerful."

"Also," Namine continued "The other six princesses of heart are nurses at that mental institute, and Kingdom Hearts is located in the basement where Ansem hid it." Kairi repeated this information to Sora. "Ansem wants to use Kingdom Hearts to become all powerful." Kairi repeated this as well.

"So how do I fit into this whole fairy tale?" Sora asked. Now it was Roxas's turn to speak.

"Ansem controls the Heartless, and only you have the ability to defeat them with your keyblade. Organization controls an army of lower Nobodies, which it plans on using to battle Ansem's heartless. If either of them manage to unlock Kingdom Hearts, then it's all over." Sora repeated this information to Kairi.

"What am I supposed to do Roxas?"

"You two have to convince the other princesses of heart to help unlock Kingdom Hearts as soon as possible, obtain its power, then defeat Ansem and the Organization." Sora repeated this. "So do you believe me now, Sora?"

"I… can't. No. This all seems so insane…"

* * *

Sora was dreaming. He was standing in a large field. The sky was blue, the grass was green the air was sweet. Despite all this perfection, Sora could feel a certain electricity in the air. Something was terribly wrong.

Suddenly, off to the left, a pool of darkness appeared, out of which rose a single solitary Heartless. Sora remembered that form well: it was the same thing that had swarmed him back at the institution! Suddenly, in his hand, Sora felt something heavy. He looked. He was holding a giant key. So this was the keyblade.

Sora swung the keyblade at the Heartless, easily dispatching it, only to see it immediately replaced by 3 more. Sora was not afraid: they were no match for his keyblade. After killing the third Heartless, he felt a sickening crack. He looked at the keyblade, horrified to see that it had been badly broken.

"I warned you Sora." Sora spun around, and Roxas was standing behind him. "I warned you the medicine you were taking was weakening your abilities, and that if you continued to take it, the Heartless would kill you."

"You bastard Roxas! This isn't fucking real, and you know it!." Roxas took a step closer.

"Sora, this is real. More real than you know. And you're throwing it all way because Riku told you too." The Heartless were getting awfully close to him.

"Prove it."

"If I was really a delusion, the Clozapine would have taken care of me." Sora had to admit it was a valid point. "But I'm still here, Sora! All that medicine you've been taking is making your keyblade weak and now you're going to die."

_Damn._ Thought Sora. _He's right, it makes sense._ He turned back to the Heartless, there were anywhere near a hundred now, and he knew his keyblade would only last long enough to kill two or three more.

"Sora, I can save you." Sora turned around again. Roxas was holding a new keyblade. In fact, he was holding two. One was dark and gothic, while the other was bright and happy. "If you promise to stop listening to these liars, and to begin taking your destiny seriously, I will save you from this." Sora bowed his head. There was no way out of this. No logical reasoning. Roxas was right, and if Sora didn't admit it now, he was going to die.

"I promise."

* * *

That night, Kairi also had a dream. In her dream she stood on a platform surrounded by darkness, but in front of her, there was one large door. Namine stood next to the door.

"What is this door?" Kairi asked.

"Kingdom Hearts. The true one."

"So what does Ansem have in the basement of the institution then?"

"An incomplete portal. What we have to do is build a portal here, in this basement, and bring the other princesses of heart here."

"You know Namine, even if Sora didn't believe Roxas, I believe you."

"Then believe me when I say this. You have to stop taking the medicine."

"Why?"

"It's ruining the purity of your heart. If you keep taking it, you won't be able to open Kingdom Hearts."

* * *

When the two awoke, there was a secret understanding between them. Sora was notably shaken when he came downstairs for breakfast, while Kairi simply looked relieved.

Riku noticed Sora's different appearance first.

"Sora, you look like you've seen a ghost."

"No, just had a nightmare." As Sora said those words, he once again felt the terror of the moment when his keyblade cracked, that feeling of being utterly defenseless. Well no more.

"What was the nightmare about?"

"I forgot." Sora lied. "I just remember being terribly afraid."

"Well, at least it's over now. Here's your medicine." Riku place the medicine next to Sora's plate. Sora palmed it, and pretended to take while discreetly slipping it into his pocket. He noticed Roxas had appeared on the other side of the room. He gave Sora an approving nod. "And here's your medicine Kairi." Riku gave her a pink pill, which she pretended to take.

* * *

The sound of Riku's car pulling out of the driveway was refreshing. They no longer had to pretend they weren't on to his little schemes to end them.

"I'm going to the basement." Kairi said nonchalantly almost the second Riku had left. "Namine is going to help me build a portal to Kingdom Hearts."

"That's good! Roxas is going to teach me how to use my Keyblade so I can defeat our enemies."

And so they busied themselves.

* * *

Riku was assigned to a new patient when he arrived at the Institute. His name was Axel.

"So Axel, what are you in here for?"

"Because I killed my sister, I burned down my house, I found a way to change my hears, I joined a rag-tag group of people in order to get my heart back, and now I'm here. Got it memorized?"

"Close." Riku commented on Axel's answer. But you're not delving into your own problems. What's really wrong with you?"

"Nothing is wrong with me."

"Axel, you're anti-social."

"Hey, I'm very social!"

"That's not what I mean, Axel. If you're anti-social, you have no regard for the rules of society or the rights of others." Axel considered this for a second.

"Well I guess you're right then."

"Tell me about your friends."

"The Organization.

"Yes." Axel smiled.

"Our hearts have all been changed, and we want to fix them."

"How are you going to… fix… your hearts?"

"With Kingdom Hearts!"

"What is that?"

"To be honest… I'm not entirely sure. Xemnas knows. He's our leader." Riku wrote that name down. It could be useful.

* * *

Sora looked at the shape Kairi had constructed out of random objects throughout the house. In some strange way, the construction was beautiful.

"Will it work?" he asked.

"With the six princesses and me, yes." Sora nodded. He approached the black heart-shaped object. It was massive, occupying the entire wall. It was almost hypnotizing.

"Kairi, how are we going to get the princesses here?" Sora had been unsuccessfully attempting to dredge up a plan all day. The problem was that Kairi's car had been impounded soon after she was diagnosed. This meant the only way for them to get to the Radiant Gardens Mental Institute was to use Riku's car, and they had no way to get the keys from him.

"It's going to be tough. When Riku gets home, we have to knock him out!" Sora could see that that would eliminate their problem rather easily.

"So you'll get the princesses, and I'll get Ansem once we're inside."

"Yep."

* * *

"So that's Kingdom Hearts? A collection of hearts that have been released from certain creatures?"

"Indeed."

"And it's locked?"

"That is correct."

"And there are several ways to open it, like combining seven pure hearts?"

"Yes."

"And once you open Kingdom Hearts, your heart will be fixed." Xemnas nodded slowly.

Riku mentally diagnosed Xemnas with dissociative fugue. The only symptom that didn't fit was his apparent memory of his "former" life, as dissociative fugue included amnesia. Riku decided this could be explained simply: Xemnas's memories were fake. Everything else fit: the sudden change in identity, trouble with day-to-day activities, and last but not least a break with a reality.

Perfect fit.

Like a key in a lock.

* * *

The trap was set. Sora was hiding on the side of the driveway waiting for Riku. He would be able to see him the moment his car door opened.

Kairi was just behind the front door, waiting to burst out to help Sora get Riku inside.

After that, the plan was simple.

Take the keys

Tie up Riku

Put Riku in basement

Leave Riku a note explaining what they did

Familiar headlights were coming down the road. It was time.

* * *

Riku pulled up into the driveway. He immediately noticed that all the lights in the house were off,

_How odd…_ he thought.

The weight of his car shifted forward and back, indicating it had come to a complete stop. He turned the keys, which turned off the car, dousing him in darkness.

For some odd reason, Riku felt as if something were wrong, as if some small object were only slightly out of place. As he began to contemplate the nagging feeling, it grew. Suddenly an unexplainable terror had taken him over.

His hand lashed out for the door, wrenching it open. There was a rustling off the side of the driveway. Riku's head snapped to look at it. Suddenly…

A solid contact.

A flash of light.

Total darkness.

* * *

Kairi burst out from behind the front door. Sora was standing over Riku's unconscious body. As Kairi looked Riku's face, she noticed the rock lying next to his head. She also noticed that a puddle of red was beginning to seep through the white hair covering his scalp.

"Wow… I really got him." Sora said breathlessly.

"Help." Kairi reached down to begin moving Riku.

"Wait." Sora reached down and removed the keys from Riku's pocket.

They moved Riku down to the basement, and turned the lights on there. First they bound his hands behind his back, then his legs. Sora had already written the note, and he left it on the ground in front of Riku.

The conspirators returned to the car.

"Sora do you have it?"

"What?"

"You know, it?" Sora showed her the bulge in his pocket to reveal that he did indeed have it. Kairi nodded.

They got in the car and drove away.

* * *

The man at the security checkpoint outside of the Radiant Gardens Mental Institute recognized Riku's car from a distance. The man knew that Riku only came back after his shift when there was an emergency. The guard opened the gate and let him in. No questions asked.

* * *

The car parked.

Sora got out, followed by Roxas.

"Sora, you can't go in through the front door. Unlock the back one with your keyblade." Sora nodded and went to the back door.

He summoned his keyblade and pointed it at the door. A bright white stream shot from the tip of his keyblade as he gripped it tight. The feeling of the release of his power was exhilarating. The two entered the now accessible hallway.

_Ansem, I'm coming,_

* * *

"Ansem you have a call from security." Ansem sighed. They never called with anything good to say.

"Put it through, please." There was a second's wait as the lines disconnected and reconnected.

"Ansem?"

"Yes."

"A boy just… well he appears to have pleasured himself onto the unlocked backdoor then went inside. We have no idea why." Ansem was taken aback by how bizarre this turn of events. He also regretted not replacing the lock that had been removed from the door a month earlier. Ansem couldn't even remember how it had broken in the first place.

"Restrain him as soon as possible."

* * *

Kairi kept her head down as she entered into the institute. She was wearing her nurse's outfit when she entered, so security had no reason to suspect her.

She made her way to the Nurses' Supply Room with no trouble. Once there she pilfered six syringes filled with sedatives as Namine watched over her shoulder.

Namine had already told Kairi which nurses where the princesses, and now Kairi had the means to get them back to her house.

* * *

Sora was shaking from fear. Or stress. It didn't change the result. In an attempt to calm himself, he focused on the sound of his feet hitting the tile floor.

Pock Pock

Pock Pock

Pock(pock)Pock

Sora froze. He was being followed. He turned around.

Behind him stood a burly security guard.

"You're not supposed to be here." The guard said.

"I have to be. If I wasn't the world would be in danger."

"You're just a loon who got out of his cage." The guard took a step closer.

"Stay back. I can't let you stop me." Sora reached into his pocket, and felt it. It was time to use it.

"Son, you're trespassing. Don't add to your crimes. Make things easier for the both of us and don't struggle."

"I'm sorry, there's too much at stake here. I don't want to do anything bad to you, but if you try to stop me I won't have a choice." The guard laughed and took another step forward.

Sora took a step back and took it out of his pocket. It was a pistol. Sora pulled the trigger. The guard stood frozen in his spot for a moment. He looked down. In the center of his chest was a red circle, growing steadily. He touched, and pulled his now wet fingers away.

"Son of a bitch…" The guard collapsed. Sora turned and continued walking down the hall to the stairs. There was o time for regret: he had a world to save.

* * *

Riku awoke in his basement. The first thing he noticed was his monstrous headache.

"Fuck…" he groaned as his vision came into focus. He tried to remember what happened, but he could only remember opening the door to his car. He noticed a note lying below him on the floor

_Riku:_

_Sora and I don't blame you for helping Ansem. You probably didn't know the extent to which you were being used. Here's a brief explanation of what has been going on:_

_Ansem has a built a portal to Kingdom Hearts in the basement of the Radiant Gardens Mental Institute. Organization XIII is looking for the portal, but they don't know it's there. As you've probably noticed by now, we built our own portal to it here in the basement. It won't work without the seven princesses of heart, though, which we have left to get._

_I'm sure you're wondering what you're part in this whole thing was. Ansem has been using the Radiant Gardens Mental Institute as a sabotage operation. The drugs he had you prescribe us were intended to eliminate our ability to defy him. Every patient in the institute could hinder Ansem's plan, and so he's keeping them under control._

_We will be back soon. Please wait for us, we may need your help._

_Sora and Kairi_

"Well Riku, you've found yourself in the perfect storm. Where coincidence joins forces with Murphy's law leaving you in a situation entirely…" Riku paused for effect "inescapable."

He began to undo the binds on his hand.

* * *

Sora burst into Ansem's office. He had shot and killed four guards to get there.

"Ansem." Sora said,

"I recognize you… Sora." Ansem said as he recalled his name. "You have schizophrenia, and judging by your tone of voice, facial expression, and stance, I assume you believe I'm trying to destroy the world, or something along those lines?" Sora noticed Roxas behind him.

"Sora, don't let him get into your head."

"Don't worry Roxas, I'm not listening to a word."

"Sora, the person you're talking to doesn't exist."

"He's my nobody, of course he doesn't exist to you! I'm the only one who can hear or see him." Sora took a step toward Ansem, who took a step back, "Me and Kairi know that you want to use Kingdom Hearts!"

"Kingdom…Hearts!"

"Don't play dumb, you fucker! And I suppose you don't know about your heartless attacking me while I was trapped in a room here either?"

"Sora, calm down! I'm not the man you think I am!"

"Sora, don't listen to him! He's trying manipulate his way out of this."

"I know." Sora said with a frightening resolve. He drew his pistol and pointed it at Ansem.

"Sora, stop! You don't know what you're doing."

"The fuck I don't." Sora smiled devilishly. "I'm about to save the world." Sora pulled the trigger.

* * *

Riku was stumbling up the stairs. He was still disoriented from Sora's blow earlier. He pressed a hand to the wall next to him to stabilize himself. A few more steps upward and he was on the landing.

Riku slowly made his way to his study. To his phone. He sat down in front of his desk, when he noticed its drawer was sticking out a few centimeters beyond the edge of the desk itself. It was open. Unlocked an open.

_I left my desk unlocked,_ Riku thought with growing horror. _That's where I keep my…_ Riku grasped the knob and yanked the drawer open. In the center of the now revealed storage space was an empty spot, roughly in the shape of a pistol.

_A string of coincidence makes a situation inescapable_, Riku mused. He buried his face in his palm.

"This is bad, Riku. Really fucking bad." He mumbled to himself. Riku grabbed the phone. Something had to be done.

* * *

Kairi had just loaded the last of the six nurses into the back of Riku's car. At that moment, Sora came running to her.

"Ansem is dead, but I don't know how much longer we can stay."

"We don't have to stay an longer. Let's go!" Spurred by thought of being pursued, Sora and Kairi quickly got into the car and left. Unbeknownst to them, three cars followed them as they left.

* * *

(some time earlier)

Axel sat in his room, when he noticed two nurses who were arguing just outside of his room. Axel liked conflict, so he moved to the door to better hear what they were saying.

"Kairi, you're crazy. Really." The one said.

"No, Kingdom Hearts is real, and I can't open it without you!" The one called Kairi responded. The words "Kingdom Hearts" tore into Axel's brain, making his heart skip a beat.

"Kairi, you need help. You're sick, you…"

_Ooh,_ thought Axel, _Too bad she didn't notice Kairi's syringe…_ And in a few seconds, the nurse who was not Kairi was down and out.

_Those sedatives _are_ effective!_ He mused. Axel decided to tell Xemnas about his new information on Kingdom Hearts. He waited patiently for Kairi to drag the drugged nurse out of sight of his door.

Axel quickly picked the lock. He could have easily done it before, but before, he would have had no reason to. Why rock the boat?

Once free, Axel slunk over to Xemnas's door, which he also found easy to pick.

"Xemnas! Get the gang together: we're going to get Kingdom Hearts."

* * *

(back in the present)

Sora wanted to find a way to externalize his current emotions. Shooting five people was by no means easy on the conscience. He decided to idly observe his surroundings. Anything to take his mind of what he had done.

That's when he noticed the three sets of headlights following the car. The light from the pursuers was painfully bright when reflected through the side mirror. To his horror, he realized those headlights had been following them the entire time.

"Kairi, drive faster." She looked at Sora, then, following his gaze, looked in the mirror.

"Have they been there the whole time?"

"I think so."

"Do you think it's…" she didn't have to finish her question, nor did Sora have to verbalize his answer.

Kairi pressed the accelerator.

The engine revved.

The speed increased.

* * *

Riku's head was clearer now. Beyond that, nothing else had improved. In fact, they had probably gotten worse.

All of his calls to the institute had gone unanswered, which was a bad sign. He had called the police, but it was entirely possible that it was already too late.

Earlier, Riku had opened the window hoping some fresh air would help clear his head. From the open window he heard the familiar crunch of car tires on gravel. He looked out the window and saw his car pulling up the driveway. He also noticed he had turned on his study light. It was too late to pretend he hadn't untied himself.

Sora and Kairi emerged from the car. Kairi was the first to notice Riku.

She smiled and waved. Sora followed suit. Riku felt confused

The two moved around to the back of the car and opened it. Then they pulled out what appeared to be a…body.

"My god…" Riku panted. The two shuffled into the house with the body and brought it downstairs.

A few moments later, Riku heard Kairi and Sora emerge from the basement. He expected to hear them go outside as they went to retrieve the next body. Instead, he heard them begin to come up the stairs.

Riku's heart began to race; his mind was overwhelmed with panic. Two schizophrenic individuals, one who was armed, were approaching his location. Riku visually scanned the room, but felt his heart drop as he realized he had no escape. The only option was the open window, but the subsequent two-story drop was enough to discourage Riku from that course of action.

Sora and Kairi appeared in the doorway. They were both smiling friendly. Perhaps menacingly. Riku thought he almost preferred that they be scowling at him, perhaps growling menacingly. Instead from the doorway he was met with nothing but two smiles, two infinitely frightening smiles.

"Come help us Riku!" Kairi said in an encouraging overtone, as if she was having lunch at high school and was trying to invite a lonely student to sit with her group of friends.

Riku couldn't produce a true response. He wanted with every bone in his body to refuse, to say "no," but he knew that was not an option. Not when one of the two people who so desperately wanted his help was doubly armed with a distorted sense of reality and a gun. Rather than respond, Riku simply stood and motioned for the two to show him the way.

* * *

Demyx was the driver of the first van. He was currently parked a few houses down the street from Riku. None of the car lights were on: he didn't want to draw attention to himself.

His was the only vehicle that had followed Riku all the way to his house. Demyx had a photographic memory, and so remembered the route to Riku's house exactly. He was supposed to direct the other two vans to Riku's house when they were finished with whatever it was they were doing.

In his boredom, Demyx's mind began to wander. He mused on how easy it was to get out of the institute. For some reason, security was completely under-staffed. They were also panicking over the entry of two people into the institute. Demyx assumed the intruders were probably the reason there was so little security around. Anyway, the 13 of them had a pretty easy time of overtaking the security center, where they were able to get keys to the cars, walkie-talkies as well as a good deal of money. No guns though. For some reason, Xemnas said they wouldn't be necessary.

Denyx began to wonder what exactly what was taking the other so long.

The walkie-talkie began to receive a signal.

* * *

Axel was standing in a parking lot outside of a liquor store. Around him, other organization members were bringing bottles of vodka to the two vans.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Demyx's voice crackled through the walkie-talkie.

"I said we've got what we need for the cocktails. We were trying to see if we could find some cheap gas or dish soap to go with it, but we're just going to have stick with ethanol." Axel repeated. The frustration in his voice was hard to cover up, but Axel was doing his best. The debatable piece was whether or not his best was enough.

"Oh. Okay." Demyx responded. "We'll be waiting. Buzz if you get lost."

"Sure." Axel answered. _Demyx is a bit slow…_ he thought. Axel wasn't worried though, he just had to do his job.

In his head, Axel ran over the plans for getting Kingdom Hearts. Xemnas would enter and attempt to talk Riku, Kairi, and Sora into opening the portal for them. Axel would wait outside for Xemnas's order to begin throwing the cocktails, in case they needed a little more convincing.

Axel thought the plan seemed flawless. It was time to go.

* * *

Sora and Riku set down the last of the unconscious princesses.

"Kairi, what do we do now?" Sora asked. Namine appeared behind Kairi.

"We need to wake them up, and after that all seven of you need to join hands, and the two princesses on either side of the resulting line need to place their hands on the portal." Namine explained. A shock ran through Kairi. Fear. Her stomach suddenly felt as if it were going to eject all of its contents at any moment.

"Namine, you didn't tell me the princesses had to be _awake_ for this to work,"

"They need to be awake!?" Sora and Riku exclaimed.

"They shouldn't be that hard to wake up, should they?" asked Namine with a quizzical look on her face.

"Namine, I sedated them in order to get them here. They can only wake up on their own, and that won't be for at least a few more hours." Namine smiled and laughed.

"That's no big deal, silly! The portal will work fine in a few hours just like it would now! All we have to do is wait, and we have nothing to worry about." Kairi looked at Namine.

"Don't you know? Organization XIII followed us here from the institute. We need to open the portal now." Riku jumped. It was small and barely noticeable, but he jumped. Riku remembered how insane and desperate Axel and Xemnas had sounded during his sessions with them. And now Sora and Kairi had accidentally tipped them off to the fact that what they wanted was in Riku's basement. And the Organization had somehow managed to escape and was on its way to his house right now. And they wouldn't be able to do anything for at least a few more hours.

_The Perfect Storm._

"This is bad, this is bad…" Sora was repeating to himself in an attempt to produce some sort of rational thought. "Riku, do you have any thing designed to reverse the effects of sedatives."

"Actually… I do!" Riku realized that in the back of the freezer, he kept several syringes of sedatives and stimulants. Quickly, he tried to remember how much time it would take for the stimulants to wake up the princesses. "20-30 minutes is what I need." He ran upstairs to get the syringes that could save them.

"Sora." It was Roxas. "I don't think that will be enough time."

"We have to think positively Roxas. At this point it's the only chance we've got."

"I know, but in case it doesn't work you have to be ready to defend everyone. You're the protector the master of the keyblade, remember?"

"Yes, I remember." Sora pulled out the gun and looked at it. "I think I'm low on bullets." At this Kairi turned to Sora.

"I can help! Riku has a box of clips here in the basement!" Kairi showed Sora to the box, where he reloaded the gun and then stuffed three more clips into his pockets. "Sora…" Kairi began. "I know this plan hasn't worked out right at all, but I think you did great."

"Thanks Kairi, I think you did great too!" Kairi smiled. Sora smiled. They heard the footsteps of Riku coming down the stairs and the moment passed.

Riku was holding six syringes in his hands, and he first walked to the princesses lying closest to the stairs.

Within a few minutes Riku had used all the syringes.

"So how much time until they wake up?" Sora asked.

"There's no way to know exactly. I'd say 15-20 minutes would be a good guess. Sora nodded

Just then there was banging on the door.

"Fuck!" Riku yelled. "Those stimulants need more time to work."

Banging.

Kairi began to cry faintly, Sora and Riku began to hug her in an attempt to comfort her.

Banging… the sound of wood cracking.

"Sora, be ready." Roxas whispered.

Banging. Breaking. Snapping. Falling.

The door had been broken down, leaving the house completely open. Footsteps began to flow into the house. The three listened as they slowly began exploring. Some had already reached the door to the basement stairs. They could hear that door creak open, followed by several sets of foots steps descending down the stairs.

Xemnas stepped onto the floor of the basement. He first looked at the three huddling in the corner. Then his gaze rotated to the portal on the wall.

"How truly magnificent." He said. "I find it hard to believe you three were able to build this with your own hands. Well done." He approached it slowly. Deliberately. "It is still closed." He stated. Then he suddenly turned on the Sora, Riku and Kairi. "Why?"

"We can't open it, not until the princesses wake up." Xemnas buried his face in his right palm.

"You fools." He sighed. "No matter. Once Kingdom Hearts is opened we can be whole again."

Sora felt his heart sink. It was too late. There was nothing that could be done to stop Xemnas and the rest of the Organization from opening the portal and becoming all-powerful.

"Don't give up yet Sora. This is your time to shine."

"Roxas, what the fuck are you talking about? How am I supposed to beat 13 of them?"

"With your gun. From the way these three are looking at yours, I can tell they're scared. If you use it, you can beat them." Sora nodded silently.

"Zexion. Luxord. Take care of these three. I'll be waiting outside." Xemnas calmly walked back up the stairs.

"Hey Luxord, I want to get the one who's hair is the same color as mine." Zexion said. "I don't like it when people other than me have my beautiful silvery-blonde hair."

"Fine. I'll take the shorter one then."

Sora and Riku both rose to their respective challenges.

* * *

Xemnas walked out of threshold that was once the front door.

"How'd it go?" asked Axel, who was standing on the lawn. "Need me to light a fire under their asses?"

"Yes, Axel, that would be nice. However, please make sure the fire is only on the wings of the house. We want to keep the portal accessible." Axel nodded in response to Xemnas's command.

"Alright guys," he started. "We've got to fill one order of Molotov cocktails ASAP!"

* * *

Riku looked at Zexion. He knew he had to beat him, but he couldn't think of any possible way to do it. He frantically searched the area for a weapon, a tool, anything.

_This isn't your area of expertise._ Riku didn't recognize that voice. He couldn't place a source for it either.

_The source is you my friend. I am your not-so-friendly half. Call me Xehanort._ Xehanort? That was an odd name for a creepy alter ego.

_Well if you don't like it, I could always take on the name of the one man you always hated._ Riku didn't know whom this Xehanort thing was referring to.

_I'm referring to your boss. You always hated Ansem, thought he was trying to undermine your work. Why not call me Ansem?_ Riku was starting to get scared by this dark voice. What did it want?

_I want to help you out of this tight spot here. For that, I'm going to have to take over. You'll thank me later. Good night._

Riku blacked out.

* * *

Sora looked at Luxord, wondering what he was armed with. Surely a man so strange would use weapons equally as strange?

Luxord pulled out a large die, about the size of the palm of his hand.

"I call this my Big Die." He rolled I across the floor towards Sora. The die bounced and rolled almost happily across the floor until it came to rest about three feet away from Sora. Three dots were showing on the top side. "Ooh, three. That's not too shabby." Sora looked at Luxord quizzically when the die exploded. The radius of it was about 2 to 2½ feet, leaving Sora some slight 1st degree burns.

"What the FUCK?!?" Sora exclaimed.

"Now you know the game." Luxord laughed. "I built these things before I was admitted, and I found them in the security headquarters before we escaped. The chemicals inside mix differently depending on the number it lands on. The bigger the number, the bigger the explosion." Sora drew his gun and pointed it at Luxord. "Ah ah ah!" He said. "If you shoot me, all the die I'm carrying will go off at full strength at once. An explosion like that will probably level the house."

"You bastard." Sora breathed. He was completely stumped.

"Let's roll again." Luxord produced another game die and rolled it at Sora. It landed with the one facing upwards. "Damn. Lucky." The die exploded with a force comparable to a cheap party popper. Then Sora got an idea.

"And again." Luxord announced. He rolled the die, which came to rest with a 5 pointing upwards. Before Luxord could make a snide comment about the force of the impending explosion, Sora kicked the die at Luxord.

Luxord's smile faded. When the die was about two feet from him it exploded. The radius was nearly seven feet, big enough to almost hurt Sora. Luxord was blown onto the wall behind him, three feet or so to the right of the portal.

"Fucking… bastard…" he coughed. Blood spattered onto his black robes. "How did… you know that… the explosion… wouldn't set off… the other dice?" Sora smiled.

"I didn't."

"Ah.." Luxord laughed, which quickly turned into an extremely loud cough, splattering more blood. "A gambler… I like that…" Luxord took the deepest breath he could before continuing. "Only two things… set them off… one is sharp trauma… like a bullet… the other is pressing… the white button… in the middle… of the 5 face…" he handed Sora one of his dice slowly. Sora noticed that indeed, the dot in the middle of the face of the die with 5 dots was actually a button. "Clever huh?" Sora nodded. "You can keep that… a souvenir." Sora nodded again and pocketed it. Exploding die had many applications, and Sora didn't think it was a bad idea to be prepared. He looked over at Riku to find him kneeling over a dead Zexion with a horrified look on his face.

* * *

Riku's whole body was shaking with horror as he looked at Zexion. He felt himself wretch as he looked at the syringe jammed into his Carotid artery. The plunger on the syringe had been jammed as far down as it would go.

"Arterial Gas Embolism" Riku said aloud. "A large bubble, injected through this syringe blocked the artery to his brain giving him a massive stroke resulting in death… Jesus." Riku brought his hand up to his forehead, then slicked back his hair. "What's wrong with me?"

"Riku!" It was Sora. Riku looked over at him, to see him pointing. "The princesses are starting to wake up!"

Sora and Kairi busied themselves helping the princesses stand and instructing them on what to do. Riku simply watched.

As the princesses and Kairi joined hands, Riku heard the distant noise of glass breaking. It was coming from upstairs. He got up and cautiously walked toward the stairs. When he got there, he noticed an oddly wavering orange-yellow light spilling from the floor above.

Fire.

Riku ran upstairs to find that the extreme right and left parts of his house were engulfed in flame.

"You bastards!" He tried to yell over the roar of the fire. He had no idea what to do, how to escape. He remembered that there was a fire extinguisher in the basement. Riku turned around and ran back down the stairs.

As he reached the floor of the basement Sora came running up to him.

"Riku, it's not working! The portal won't open! You have to help us!"

At that point, something within Riku broke. A dark form that had been sleeping in his psyche likely since he was born began to awake.

_Your anger. I like it._ That anger seemed to spread to every part of Riku's body until he was filled with it.

"Sure, I can help you understand why your portal isn't working." Riku said, not even trying to hide the anger in his voice. He turned to face Sora, bearing an obviously false grin. "Its because it's all in your fucking head, that's why." Riku's grin began to dissolve into a scowl.

"Riku you're scaring me…"

"You caused all this, you little shit. You and that non-existent trouble maker you talk to!"

"Riku, please stop."

"I'm going to teach you what reality is."

_That's my cue. Good night Riku._

* * *

(Two Weeks Later)

Riku was walking down a hall in the Radiant Gardens Mental Institute. He passed by Kairi in the halls. She smiled at him sweetly, then continued on her way. She had recently been put on a stronger anti-psychotic, and almost all of her symptoms had disappeared. He turned right into the room he had been walking too.

Sora was waiting inside the room. He had been put on an experimental drug with positive results.

"So how have you been Sora?"

"Fine, I guess."

"Any negative effects from the medicine?"

"Not that I'm aware of." Riku heard someone enter the room behind him. It was the new director of the institute, with two burly orderlies behind him.

"Riku what are you doing in here?"

"Checking on my patient. He was re-admitted two weeks ago and I haven't been able to talk to him until now…"

"Riku this room is empty." Riku felt a chill run down his spine. He turned around and looked at Sora, who was grinning broadly.

"B-b-but… he's right there!"

"Riku I just got off the phone with the police. They have been investigating the disappearance of the 13 individuals who escaped from our institute two weeks ago, and the kidnapping of six of our nurses."

"What did they say?"

"They found all of the bodies in your basement. Dead." Riku was dumbstruck. For a few seconds he was absolutely blank. At that moment Kairi appeared next to the new director,

"Let me explain." She said. "You have acute schizophrenia, but for some reason, it wasn't making itself apparent. The stress of the events two weeks ago brought out your schizophrenia and you killed me, Sora, the nurses, and all of the Organization."

"Kairi… what… this is…"

"And when you killed me and Sora, I guess your brain felt guilty enough about it that it now forces you to see us every day. That way you can never forget what you did." Kairi smiled. But it there was something evil and sinister about it.

"Looks like were going to be spending a lot of time together Riku!" Sora exclaimed.

Riku screamed in anguish as the orderlies restrained and sedated him.

_Case #000681_

_Institution: Radiant Gardens Mental Institute (temporary)_

_Patient: Riku_

_Diagnosis: Dissociative Identity Disorder_

_Symptoms: Patient has an alter which goes by "Ansem" or "Xehanort." It's possible that these are two separate alters altogether, but the Patient appears to believe them to be one personality. A suicide note was found in Riku's desk, and as far as investigators were able to gather, his gun was there as well before it was removed during the events that led to all the deaths. This indicates suicidal tendencies. Patient also suffers from visual hallucinations, claiming to see two of his victims._

_Action: Riku is scheduled to be transferred to the Psychiatric Ward of the Hallow Bastion Penitentiary. _


End file.
